YEAR IN REVIEW
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NEWS
MAY 9, 2011
After 43-year absence, CU recognizes ROTC Partnership with Navy announced following town halls, USenate vote BY SAMMY ROTH Spectator Senior Staff Writer
JACK ZIETMAN / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
RAISING UP
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Natalie Barnard-Lopez participates in the first military-style flag ceremony at Columbia in 42 years on Veterans’ Day.
Exactly four months after President Barack Obama signed the repeal of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy into law, Columbia officially recognized an ROTC program for the first time in over four decades. The Reserve Officers’ Training Corps had not been recognized by Columbia since 1969, when protests over the Vietnam War led to the dissolution of the University’s long-standing Naval ROTC program. But following a campus-wide debate this spring semester, the University Senate voted overwhelmingly to support the program’s return. “The elimination of ROTC was a symbolic gesture of frustration and anger towards policies and practices that people strongly disagreed with,” University President Lee Bollinger told Spectator last month, after announcing that NROTC would be recognized by Columbia. “And I think the sort of question now is, how do you engage in a more positive way given this
opportunity.” Although ROTC was originally ousted due to anti-military sentiment, opposition in recent years has centered on the DADT policy, which had barred gay men and women from serving openly in the military. Just days after Congress passed the DADT repeal, the University Senate announced the formation of a task force to review the military’s relationship with Columbia. The Task Force on Military Engagement hosted three University-wide town halls in February to discuss ROTC. The task force also surveyed students in Columbia College, the School of Engineering and Applied Science, Barnard College, the School of General Studies, and the School of International and Public Affairs, finding 60 percent of respondents supportive of ROTC and 33 percent unsupportive. Proponents of an ROTC return, including astronomy professor and task force member Jim Applegate, said
SEE ROTC, page 9
Students, New Yorkers gather at Ground Students trek to DC for Colbert-Stewart rallies Zero after U.S. forces kill bin Laden BY FINN VIGELAND Spectator Staff Writer Sarah Gitlin, CC ’12, sacrificed a few hours of studying and sleeping to join thousands of New Yorkers who gathered at the site of the World Trade Center the night of Sunday, May 1, after the news broke on campus that Osama bin Laden had been killed by American forces in Pakistan. “It helps bring a little closure nearly a decade after 9/11,” she said. “Obviously, it doesn’t mean the end, but as witnessed by the crowd here tonight, a lot of Columbians and Americans are feeling relieved and encouraged.” At Ground Zero, thousands gathered at Church and Vesey streets. A bagpiper played “God Bless America,” and many carried homemade signs reading “Obama 1, Osama 0.” Sean Quirk, CC ’11, said that night, “There’s no better place in America to be on this day. To sit in my dorm would be completely unacceptable.” “A lot of us expect we will be doing all-nighters this night,” Gitlin said, as she boarded a subway from Ground Zero on her way to join the festivities in Times Square, “but for very different reasons than usual.” Sarah Wolk, GS, said she was working on homework in a computer lab when someone “busted in and started yelling ‘Osama’s dead! We killed him!’”
She said she felt overjoyed at the news, because “this guarantees Obama’s reelection in 2012.” Incoming Columbia University College Democrats president Janine Balekdjian, CC ’13, said that night was a time to put politics aside. “This has nothing to do with Democrats or Republicans, it’s just amazing for America. It’s a clear victory in the war against terrorists—it’s amazing for everybody.” The moment afforded many students the opportunity to reflect on all that has changed in the nearly 10 years since Sept. 11. Sara Liben, JTS/GS ’13, and David Offit, JTS/GS ’13, said they were in the same fifth grade classroom in Boston when they first heard about the attacks. Liben, whose brother was attending Columbia at the time, said, “It’s interesting for us to be living the next step.” Liben and Offit headed down to Ground Zero together after hearing the news. “For tonight, at least, everyone has a very positive outlook,” Offit said. “Even if it’s just for a little while, it feels like there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.” Anum Javed Akram, CC ’11 and a senior adviser to Organization of Pakistani Students, said that even though it was a celebratory night, she and others were concerned about what lies ahead. “This has come at the cost of a decade of war. ... We’re certainly
worried that this might be the start of an even darker period in our history,” she said. Akram said she fears Americans may come to resent Pakistan and that fundamentalists may seek retaliation in the coming years. “When I heard he had been killed, my first thought was just, ‘I hope he wasn’t in Pakistan.’ But of course he was, and it feels like scary times are ahead.” Michael Mirer, CC ’02 and Spectator editor in chief in 2001, said that 9/11 brought a similar sense of unity to campus. “Everything was just so quiet that day. … As fractious as Columbia is, it wasn’t fractious during that period at all,” he said. “Everyone was very much in the mood to come together.” He said many gathered at The West End—now Havana Central—to watch news of the attack together. “We felt very close and very far away at the same time,” he said. Lydia Roman, a Jackson Heights resident, said she came to Ground Zero on Monday morning to remember her friend Christopher Santora, who, at 23, was the youngest firefighter to die in the World Trade Center attacks. “Is this closure? Yes, both for me and for many, many people.” Leah Greenbaum and Arvin Ahmadi contributed reporting. news @columbiaspectator.com
BY LEAH GREENBAUM Spectator Senior Staff Writer
The threat of bears did not scare Columbia Lions from showing up in full force to the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear in Washington D.C. over Halloween weekend—but, for some, transit issues did. The rally, headed by political satirists Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, attracted a huge crowd on October 30. There were two jumbotron
screens and a single set of speakers near the stage, for a 200,000-person crowd that stretched a mile down the National Mall. Although the unmistakable scent of marijuana wafted through the air, many students said the rally will not be remembered as this generation’s Woodstock. “This rally definitely won’t have the same historical significance as Woodstock,” Jordan Hollarsmith, CC ’12, said. “It was just goofy. I don’t see why
it would go down in history.” Pazia Miller, BC ’14, said the event came and went too quickly to have the lasting impact of Woodstock. “It wasn’t like meeting people and going wild and crazy,” she said. Her friend Deborah Sachare, BC ‘14, noted that the crowd spanned many generations, defying predictions that this would be an event for the
SEE RALLY, page 9
MAY 9, 2011
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
PAGE 3
Nightlife has ups and downs, but still oΩers new spots to explore BY JOSEPH POMP Spectator Staff Writer Another year of studying gone by. Another year of drinking gone by. During this school year, Morningside Heights saw the decline of Campo (2888 Broadway, between 112 and 113th streets) and the rise, or rather birth, of Mel’s Burger Bar (2850 Broadway, at 111th Street). After teeming with inebriated freshmen seemingly every weekend night last semester, Campo has settled down and become more of, well, a proper restaurant.
Max CaΩé closes at midnight but a better ambience to enjoy a glass of wine is hard to come by. And while Campo may now see considerably more business during brunch hours, Mel’s has cultivated a loyal fan base for dinner and late-night drinking. The kitchen, which serves up a creative take on fast food cuisine—with salads and the like thrown in for good measure—is open until 1 a.m. on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Mel’s website explains simply that its bar, boasting spiked milkshakes and an epic roster of beers, “is open late every night.” Broadway’s night-life offerings were bolstered as usual by The Heights Bar & Grill (2867 Broadway, between 111 and 112th streets), a favorite among no-nonsense booze crews, and Havana Central (2911 Broadway, between 113th and 114th streets), whose popular margaritas complement its Cuban cuisine.
Havana Central’s collection of confiscated fake IDs, though, is as extensive as its menu. Most undergraduates head elsewhere after dinner. Amsterdam Avenue held its own this year with 1020 (1020 Amsterdam Ave., between 110 and 111th streets), always a go-to dive bar. Sip (998 Amsterdam Ave., between 109th and 110th streets) remains relatively untouched by the Columbia partying masses. But the selfproclaimed hipster clientele and 2 a.m. to 4 a.m. happy hour might be worth the time of more students. To escape the immediate Columbia bubble, trips north of 120th Street and south of 110th Street are well worthwhile. A low-key oasis lies in each direction: Max Caffé (1262 Amsterdam Ave., between 122nd and 123rd streets) to the north and Ding Dong Lounge (929 Columbus Ave., between 105 and 106th streets) to the south. Max Caffé closes at midnight, but a better ambiance to enjoy a glass of wine is hard to come by. Although mostly enjoyed for afternoon coffee and snacks (especially their signature crostini), its dim lighting and cozy couches give it a late-night vibe. For an actual late night, though, Ding Dong is hard to beat. Far divier than 1020, this ’80s punk-rock oriented bar offers an extremely laid-back atmosphere. Where it draws its clientele from is a bit of a mystery, but such is the charm that justifies the walk there. Students sticking around Morningside Heights this summer may want to spend newfound downtime exploring the city, but local businesses continue to operate all summer long and should not be overlooked. As much as students may complain about Morningside Heights, it’s a calm little corner of the city that can serve quite well as the backdrop to a fun night out.
CHRISTINA PHAN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
PIZZA PIE
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Restaurateur Cappitta opened two Italian eateries in MoHi this year: Bettolona (pictured here) and Buca.
MoHi and SoHa cultivate foodie scene BY JASON BELL Spectator Senior Staff Writer
JASPER L. CLYATT / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
BURGER AND BEER Mel’s Burger Bar opened last August to great enthusiasm from the Columbia crowd. Students frequent it for dinner and going out alike. |
Eating at Columbia University has never been better. As the ranks of student food enthusiasts swell and restaurateurs look for affordable real estate, Morningside Heights and Harlem are turning into restaurant destinations. From haute cuisine to food trucks, burgers to beer halls—Columbia’s dining scene has bloomed. As the spring semester comes to a close, there’s a new world of great food just blocks beyond the gates. Columbia’s foodie-fied transformation has resulted from food-trend trickle down. The same forces that shape New York’s macroscopic dining world influence the direction of Columbia eats, too. Burgers continue to fascinate New Yorkers. This year, Michael White unveiled his Pat LaFrieda blended “White Label” burger at Ai Fiori (400 Fifth Ave., between 36th and 37th streets), the Frites ‘N’ Meats truck literally exploded, and Shake Shack expanded far beyond Manhattan—beltway, prepare to loosen a few notches. In Morningside Heights, Mel’s Burger Bar (2850 Broadway, at 111th Street) set up shop, serving LaFrieda patties and challenging Campo (2888 Broadway, between 112th and 113th streets) for student parties. With an expansive beer list and happening late-night scene, the strangely expensive sliders go down easy. Five Guys, a popular burger chain, opened an outpost across Broadway, between 110th
and 111th streets. Go for peanuts and cheap(er) burgers at Five Guys first, Smuttynose IPA at Mel’s second. A wave of new restaurants has also appeared east of Morningside Park, brewing excitement in South Harlem. Celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson started Red Rooster Harlem (310 Malcolm X Blvd., between 125th and 126th streets) as a rallying point for the community. The New York Times’ Sam Sifton awarded it two stars, and it’s been a rousing success since its media-hyped soft opening. Closer to Columbia, Bier International (2099 Frederick Douglass Blvd., between 113th and 114th streets) began serving cosmopolitan bar food late last summer. Inside its glass-paneled dining room, a crowd of students and young families gnosh on bratwurst and fresh-baked pretzels. A few blocks away, Lido (2168 Frederick Douglass Blvd., at 117th Street) demonstrates the pitfalls of so many new restaurants opening up: There will always be a dud or two in the bunch. Rustic Italian food doesn’t need to be refined, but Lido’s sloppy cooking reveals a poorly designed concept. For a sweet treat in the neighborhood, Levain Bakery (2167 Eighth Ave., at 117th Street and 167 74th St., at Amsterdam Avenue) opened a second shop. Softballsized chocolate chip cookies cap off an evening of Harlem-wandering nicely. Although Morningside Heights still doesn’t have a Motorino or Keste, it finally does have decent wood-fired pizza. Bettolona (3143 Broadway, at La Salle Street) arrived in September and
established a reputation for blistered, chewy crusts. Sebastiano Cappitta, Bettolona’s owner, attempted to solidify his hold over Morningside Heights with Buca (203 103rd Street, at Amsterdam Avenue). But Buca remains Bettolona’s forgotten sibling, drawing in more upper Upper West Siders than students. Throughout the year, Columbia became a destination for more mobile vendors than just Wafels & Dinges. Before the Frites ‘N’ Meats propane-powered fiasco (a tank blew up), the burgers and fries truck perfumed Amsterdam Avenue with eau d’grill and oil. Korilla Barbecue still comes uptown with regularity, dishing out Korean-inflected tacos to hungry students. And ever since its first appearance on Broadway, the Desi truck has captivated Columbians with affordable chicken kati rolls and biryani. Hard-studying students now also have a better finals caffeine fix: Joe Coffee. The artisanal coffee trend has hit Columbia in full force. Lines loop through the Northwest Corner building, and for good reason. Joe’s drip coffee far surpasses its closest competitors in complexity. With doughnut- and cupcake-stocked display cases, Joe scratches off another two trends in one snacking stop. The doughnuts come from Doughnut Plant and are fabulous—try the luscious coconut cream variety, which makes frequent appearances. The 2010-11 school year was filled with burgers, soul food, food trucks, coffee, doughnuts, and as always, beer. Hopefully, next year brings even more good eats to Columbia.
Ballet gets pop culture boost, but modern holds own BY GARNET HENDERSON Spectator Staff Writer The Oscar-winning movie “Black Swan” may have catapulted ballet into popular culture this year. But on New York City stages, diverse modern dance offerings stole the show. While “Black Swan” managed to get people talking about ballet, it remains to be seen whether this effect will permanently boost ballet audiences. In February, the New York City Ballet performed its own new-and-improved version of “Swan Lake.” Eager callers asked box offices in New York and London whether Natalie Portman would be dancing in the lead role. Although the answer was no, tickets sold quickly for NYCB’s production of the famous ballet. But the company is still feeling the effects of the recession. NYCB just emerged from a labor dispute with its dancers, who were fighting cuts to their contracts. Over at American Ballet Theatre, NYC’s other historical ballet company, things are looking up. ABT’s choreographer in residence, Alexei Ratmansky, just signed on to extend his contract until 2023. Ratmansky is a wildly popular choreographer who has been credited with shaking up the ballet world.
Since ABT has been criticized for being too conservative, the company hopes that Ratmansky’s presence will enliven its image. But this season, an exciting array of modern dance overshadowed news from the ballet world. The performance lineup read like a survey of modern dance, showing the form’s past, present, and future. There were performances of works by late greats Martha Graham, Merce Cunningham, and Alvin Ailey. Living legends Paul Taylor, Mark Morris, Trisha Brown, and others presented works old and new. Mary Cochran, chair of the Barnard dance department and a former dancer with the Paul Taylor Dance Company, noted the debut of Columbia graduate Michael Novak, GS ’09, in PTDC. “I had the pleasure of setting Paul’s solo from ‘Aureole’ on Michael for his senior project,” Cochran said. “I always knew he was perfect for Paul’s work, but he did it on his own.” Another notable event in the world of modern dance was the merger between Dance Theater Workshop and the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company. DTW is a downtown performance space that has been a major force in the development of innovative contemporary dance works for almost
50 years. Its new incarnation will be called New York Live Arts. The coming year will tell what kind of impact this merger will have. “The merger between Bill T. Jones and DTW to create New York Live Arts is the biggest story of the year. It is forward thinking and very exciting,” Cochran said. DTW has been the location of the Barnard dance department’s fall performance, “The Barnard Project,” for several years. “The Barnard Project” continues as usual, connecting students with up-and-coming professional choreographers and giving them the opportunity to perform on an internationally recognized stage. The dance department also brought a taste of the professional world to campus this April with the showcase “Barnard Dances at Miller.” Students worked with highly acclaimed choreographers Kyle Abraham, Faye Driscoll, Jill Johnson, and Jon Kinzel to bring an exciting program of contemporary dance to Columbia’s Miller Theatre. The movers and shakers of modern dance in NYC refused to be ignored this year. Dance on campus was no exception, as students jumped into the world of modern dance with some of its most exciting innovators.
COURTESY OF DAVID HOPSON
MOVES AT MILLER To complement its annual fall showcase, “The Barnard Project,” the dance department added “Barnard Dances at Miller” this April. |
EDITORIAL & OPINION
PAGE 4
MAY 9, 2011
The 135th year of publication Independent since 1962 CORPORATE BOARD SAMUEL E. ROTH Editor in Chief MICHELE CLEARY Managing Editor ADITYA MUKERJEE Publisher
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From September to May, opinion writers have offered thoughtful commentary and passionate arguments on issues relevant to Columbia. Here, we offer selections from columns, op-eds, and staff editorials that drove the debate on campus. “Safe spaces are not places of victimization and differentiation. They are havens from discrimination, places to accept and grapple with identity in all its complexity.” –Jennifer Alzate, CC ’13
SAFE SPACES
“The fliers were abhorrent and purposely inflammatory, mocking an original set of campus fliers meant to discourage bigotry and intolerance. The CUCR seems to be banking on the knowledge that because its message is so controversial many will come out to hear it for themselves.” –Editorial Board “I, too, look forward to the day when society is free from discrimination, and until that time comes, the creation of a ‘safe space’ is a necessity and I will continue to support such a designation.” –Terry Martinez, dean of multicultural affairs
“There is a surprising amount of diversity within these safe spaces, but more critically, it is a diversity that is engaged and celebrated, demonstrating that there can be a community with differences.” –Sarah Ngu, CC ’12
“Does not sealing off certain sections of campus create a self-perpetuating cycle in which these demographics of people consistently remain discrete and insular minorities, separate from the rest of the community?” - J. Austin Lowe, CC ’14
ACADEMICS “I love Lit Hum. I just wished that after seeing Dante in hell and going to the lighthouse with James Ramsay, I could have rafted down the Mississippi with Huck Finn as well.” - Lanbo Zhang, CC ’14, associate editorial page editor
“Cheating breaks the bonds and taints the openness that is essential to Lit Hum and to an honest dialogue among equals. It’s a kind of violence against all of us.” –Christia Mercer, Gustave M. Berne Professor of Philosophy and the chair of Literature Humanities.
“As regulations about which graduate students can teach increase, there are bound to be larger classes and, consequently, less involved discussion in class ... we need to strenuously reassert the importance of a Core Curriculum defined by intimate class sizes and overqualified professors.” –Derek Turner, CC ’12, opinion columnist “Here’s my latest, modest proposal: Take four courses per term, and add a fifth just often enough to graduate.” -David Helfand, chair of the department of astronomy
“Regardless of our respective opinions on New York State drug law, or how we feel about the supposed damage to Columbia’s reputation that may result from Tuesday’s arrests, we would do well to remember that Chris Coles, Harrison David, Adam Klein, Stephan Vincenzo, and Mike Wymbs are not hardened criminals, but friends and classmates.” –Neil FitzPatrick, CC ’12, former opinion columnist, current opinion blogger
“Those who experience [emotional paralysis]—among them, Contemporary Civilization students—are left feeling more paralyzed because they crave answers they cannot find.” -Jelani Harvey, CC ’12
SEXUAL VIOLENCE
“Inviting Snoop Dogg to campus implicitly endorses his music and delegitimizes many of the on-campus initiatives we have to combat sexual violence.” - Anabel Bacon, CC ’14
“Why is it that we wait for an incident to occur before we decide that it is time to address it? Is Columbia going to wait for its own Yeardley Love tragedy before it addresses the issue of domestic violence and abuse on its campus?” –Vaidehi Joshi, BC ’11, former opinion columnist
“Full investigations and trials infamously can take months … the result is an unfair choice between pursuing justice in a court of law and not having to confront one’s attacker in a 9 a.m. discussion section.” -Aarti Iyer, CC ’11, opinion columnist
“Silence empowers abuse … In speaking up and taking action, we have changed the past for someone else whose ‘present’ might have been what my sister lived.” –Anonymous, Sexual violence supplement
“If I had to give any advice to a victim of sexual assault, it would be to remember that life goes on and that there are 10 times as many aspects worth living for as there are seemingly worth dying over.” – Christopher Crawford, Sexual violence supplement, CC ’13
ROTC
“At the least, ROTC has a place in Columbia’s manyroomed mansion. At the most, ROTC would make a distinctive contribution to Columbia’s educational experience and the quality of citizenship.” –Allan Silver, Professor Emeritus of sociology
“These reforms won’t be immediate, but ROTC is the best chance we have to make the military an institution more in accordance with our principles of equality. Our academic experience at Columbia that instills us with values of honesty, justice, mercy, and truth can be practically applied in military service.” -Editorial Board “Hopefully, what has not changed is Columbia’s capacity to differentiate between a curriculum that promotes knowledge and critical judgment and one that promotes the destruction of human life as a solution to political problems.” –Rosalind Morris, professor in the department of anthropology “ROTC cadets and active service-members may violate the sensibilities of these faculty members, but the University is institutionally neutral with respect to pacifism and its opposite.” –Learned Foote, CC ’11 and outgoing student body president and Sean Wilkes, ’06 graduate and U.S. Army captain
SCANDAL “So it’s about time we spoke up and called Columbia out on neglectful sanitation practices and, as such, a fundamental disrespect for the bodily integrity of entire groups of its student population. It’s our right; after all, it is us who will have to pay.” –Hannah Goldstein, BC ’13 “If the A is easy, why did I have such trouble getting a B?” Questions like these should find no occasion in genuinely educational settings where exploration, risk-taking, and imperfection are the accepted prerequisites of intellectual growth. The hasty inference that an abundance of high marks can only mean low standards is dangerously insensitive.” –Aaron Liskov, CC ’11
“What I want to address here is what concerns me most—that is, the lack of education and communication efforts on behalf of the University that I feel has diminished the quality of discussion and has tainted the results of the poll.” –Aki Terasaki, CC ’12, student body president
“But here is my concern: Why have students waited until April to address the consequences of “Inside Job” when the film was released in October? Why has our reaction been delayed by seven months?” –Amanda Gutterman, CC ’13, opinion columnist
“The reality is that fakes are illegal and the risk of confiscation or criminal prosecution is part of the fine print. Fakes are a part of campus culture—despite police busts or confiscations, they will endure. But so will law enforcement.” –Derek Arthur, CC ’13, opinion columnist
MAY 9, 2011
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PAGE 5
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PAGE 6
SPORTS
MAY 9, 2011
Despite initial success, football fell late in year BY SPENCER GYORY AND JEREMIAH SHARF Columbia Daily Spectator After a season filled with highs and lows, members of Columbia’s football team were frustrated at not reaching their goals, but expressed hope for the future of the program. The season began with a rough home defeat to Fordham. In the opener, the Light Blue led at the beginning of the second half 9-3 before the Rams scored 13 straight to defeat the Lions by a final score of 16-9. Despite the score tally, senior linebacker Alex Gross insists that Columbia was the better team. “It’s tough playing Fordham after they’ve played a game or two,” Gross said, reflecting on the opening loss. “We were by far the better team in that game. It’s game shape and game experience—both of those things play such a huge role. That’s a game we expected to win but didn’t.” Rising junior quarterback Sean Brackett says he looks forward to the beginning of next season, when they will once again take on the Rams. “I’m looking forward to the first game against Fordham,” Brackett said. “That’s the first thing we look forward to—just get a win every game.” The team seemed unaffected by the opening loss, winning three straight at home, including a 42-14 demolition of Princeton. That game marked the Lions’ highest-ever point total against the Tigers. The fifth game presented the team with some challenges. The Lions were taking part in their first road game of the season at Penn. The road presented a tough challenge, and the stifling defense of the reigning Ivy League champion Quakers proved to be too much for the Light Blue. Gross reflected on the game—one he believes they could have won. “We had a chance to make some noise in the league,” Gross said. “I really thought that a good showing in that game would be huge, especially knowing that Penn traditionally struggles on offense. That entire game was really heartbreaking.”
The misfortunes continued for the Lions as they took on Dartmouth in the Homecoming game. Coming into the game having lost the last nine homecoming contests, the team looked ready to take on a traditionally weak Big Green squad. However, after a back and forth game, the final score ended in yet another loss, 24-21, leaving the unusually full home crowd disappointed after Columbia’s offense failed to convert on a late-game drive. “Losing to Dartmouth on Homecoming was kind of like a punch to the stomach,” graduating senior tight end Andrew Kennedy said. “Anytime you lose Homecoming it sucks. We didn’t come out and execute and that’s what sucked.” The Light Blue’s struggles continued with two tough road losses to Yale and Harvard. Columbia’s final home game, which recognized the seniors, was the Empire State Bowl against Cornell. The Lions went on to win that Senior Day game in dramatic fashion, 20-17, finishing off the Big Red on a dramatic fourth and goal dive in the end zone by Brackett. “[The Cornell] game was a huge turning point for this program,” Gross said about the win. “During my time here, one of biggest downfalls that I’ve seen is being able to finish games that we are in positions to win. Closing out that game like we did was huge for the program.” Despite the team’s emotional victory against the Big Red, the team was anything but strong at Brown in its final game of the season. The Bears stomped out the Lions 38-16, however Brackett did not play. The Light Blue finished the season with a record of 4-6 (2-5 Ivy). The consistency of Sean Brackett at quarterback after his breakout freshman season was a welcome sign for the future of Columbia football. Throughout the season, Brackett tore up defenses with his arm and his legs. Within the Ivy League, Sean Brackett ranked first in passing efficiency (136.1), second in passing yards JASPER L. CLYATT / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
SEE FOOTBALL, page 10
LEADING THE PACK | Quarterback Sean Brackett led the Ancient Eight in total offense, and will be key for the Lions in 2011.
Smith’s first year brings hope for CU Basketball BY MRINAL MOHANKA Spectator Senior Staff Writer The 2010-11 season marked the third time in the last 28 years that the men’s basketball team (15-13) has achieved a winning season. The Lions’ 6-8 record in conference play was good for fifthplace in the Ancient Eight, and head coach Kyle Smith was pleased with what he experienced in his first year at the helm. “It was great,” he said after the final game against Brown in March. “Honestly it was a fun place to coach. The kids are good, smart guys, and it’s New York City. I get to coach a developmental team too, so it’s a lot of coaching, but it’s been good.” The Lions did not get off to the best possible start, falling to LaSalle 82-71 in Smith’s opening game. However, Smith did not have to wait long for his first victory. His team dropped a staggering 108 points in its home opener against Maryland Eastern Shore for an impressive 34-point win. The opening pair of games would
prove to be representative of the entire campaign: The Lions were extremely effective at achieving wins at Levien Gymnasium, but the offense tended to stagnate on the road. The Light Blue won 10 of its 14 matchups as hosts, but could only secure five wins in 14 road contests. After the resounding victory against Maryland Eastern Shore, the Light Blue fell on the road to St. John’s and Longwood, before downing Colgate at Levien, 76-63. Columbia was able to build on the win and record its first away win of the year in a 64-62 nailbiter at American. The Lions entered Ivy play with a 9-5 record, and achieved a perfect start with consecutive wins against Cornell both at home and away. The sweep of the Big Red was the first in 11 years. However, the Lions’ only other Ivy road win would come at Dartmouth. A loss at Harvard followed by falling in quick succession at Brown and Yale, and then at home against Princeton, would effectively end their brief title aspirations.
Even with championship hopes dashed, Columbia continued to impress in front of its fans, securing convincing wins against Penn and Dartmouth, but a 61-42 defeat at the hands of Harvard would mark the beginning of four-game losing streak. The following weekend, the Lions fell at both Penn’s Palestra and Princeton’s Jadwin Gymnasium and then returned to Morningside Heights to host Yale in what would arguably be the most memorable contest of the season. The Lions never took the lead, but were able to force two periods of overtime before eventually falling 87-81. But the Light Blue did not dwell on the heartbreaking loss to the Bulldogs and came out all guns blazing against Brown the next night, triumphing convincingly 91-74. In the Light Blue’s first contest against Brown earlier in the season, eventual Ivy League Rookie of the Year Sean McGonagill’s career night overpowered Columbia 87-79, but this time it was Columbia’s rising
SEE MENS BASKETBALL, page 10
JASPER L. CLYATT / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
NUMBER ONE | Noruwa Agho will shoulder much of the team’s burden when he returns in 2011 for his senior season.
Baseball failed to find expected success during the 2011 season BY RYAN YOUNG Spectator Staff Writer Coming off of their second Gehrig Division title in three years, the Lions faced high expectations for the 2011 campaign. Unfortunately for Columbia (19-25, 9-11 Ivy), things would not pan out on the field in March and April, as several close losses led to a disappointing third-place finish in the division. The hope and excitement was there for much of March, as the Lions played competitive baseball against top-notch teams in the southeast. Columbia began the season with the Bright House Stetson Invitational in Florida, where the team began by blowing a late lead to drop a 10-inning 7-6 contest in the season opener against Stetson, but rebounded with a pair of wins over Central Michigan and Illinois. The Light Blue would then spend more time away from the frigid New York weather, heading south for a challenging 10-game road trip over spring break. The solid 5-5 outing ended with a three-game sweep at the hands of Central Florida. “Overall, I think we got off to a good start. We played a good, tough schedule early and we played very good baseball,” head coach Brett Boretti said. The Lions played their first home series the following weekend with a pair of doubleheaders against Holy Cross. Columbia split both doubleheaders, but the two losses were both by a single run, foreshadowing the excruciating losses that would be Columbia’s demise in league play this year. The most agonizing of those losses, and arguably the biggest moment of the season, came in the very first conference game, a rematch of last year’s Ivy League Championship Series against Dartmouth. Looking to exact some revenge on the Big Green after last year’s heartbreaking loss, the Lions took a 4-3 lead in the next-to-last inning thanks to junior outfielder Alexander Aurrichio’s two-run single. After junior starting pitcher Pat Lowery allowed two men to reach in the final inning, Boretti brought in sophomore closer Tim Giel, who promptly gave up a three-run home run on his first pitch. From that point on, the Lions seemed deflated, unable to muster anything in their final at bats and putting forth an anemic offensive attack in the second game of the day’s doubleheader.
Although Columbia would go on to sweep a feeble Harvard team the following day, dropping two against Dartmouth was a tough pill to swallow. The other devastating sweep came the following Saturday in the team’s first conference road doubleheader at Brown. Lowery pitched well in game one, but Columbia could only muster three hits and lost 2-1. In the nightcap, the Lions had a 5-2 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth inning, but the bullpen could not hold on to the lead, giving up three in the ninth and losing the game in the eleventh by a score of 6-5. Columbia lost its next game at Yale, but rallied behind a complete game 8-1 win for senior starter Geoff Whitaker to salvage the weekend in game two. With all the close losses against the Rolfe Division, the Lions would have to play catch-up in division play, as they held just a 3-5 league record. “There’s no question that we had some tough losses,” Boretti said of his team, which lost nine one-run games by season’s end. “Those crossover games those first two weekends are very important. And we don’t prepare differently for the divisional games than we do for the early ones. It’s just a couple hits here and there. A couple balls fall in for the other team and whatnot, and you’re on the wrong end of a one-run game.” Columbia would return to Robertson Field the following weekend and take three games in a row from Cornell. Jason Banos had two clutch RBIs to win the first game 2-1, and the Lions’ offense dominated the Big Red in a rainshortened 12-2 game two win. The following day, sophomore starter Stefan Olson shut out Cornell before the Lions were shut out in their only loss of the weekend in the nightcap. Heading on the road to take on first-place Princeton the following weekend, Columbia needed to win the series to remain in contention. However, after picking up a dramatic extra-inning win in the series opener, the Lions would go on to lose the next three games by a combined five runs, officially ending hopes of a second consecutive division title. “We were fighting to get back to .500 ever since we got home from spring break,” Boretti said. “It felt like we were splitting for the rest of the year. In this league, everybody is so tight.”
SEE BASEBALL, page 10
MAY 9, 2011
SPORTS
PAGE 7
women’s soccer
men’s soccer
Season record: 9-5-3, 3-3-1 Ivy Ivy: Fifth place Star players: Ashlin Yahr, Nora Dooley Highest high: 2-0 win over Princeton to vault the Lions into first place in the Ivy Lowest low: Closing out the season with three consecutive losses to Dartmouth, Yale, and Harvard One to watch: Chelsea Ryan
Season record: 6-8-3, 2-3-2 Ivy Ivy: Fifth place Star players: Henning Sauerbier, Mike Mazzullo Highest high: Winning 1-0 at Harvard Lowest low: Losing 3-2 at home to Princeton after coming from behind to take a 2-1 lead One to watch: David Najem
ANGELA RADULESCU / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
fencing Season record: Women: 10-9, 5-1 Ivy; Men: 2-16, 0-5 Ivy Ivy: Women: Second place; Men: Sixth place Stars: Nzingha Prescod, Alen Hadzic Highest high: Women’s epee squad winning gold at the US Collegiate Squad Championships Lowest low: Men failing to defeat any Ivy opponent for the second year in a row One to watch: Women: Katya English; Men: Alex Pensler HENRY WILLSON / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
women’s rowing Ivy: Second in Mid-Atlantic conference, which consists of four Ivy schools, Georgetown, and Navy. Columbia was behind only Princeton Highest high: Topping No. 19 Tennessee and just losing to NCAA Champions Virginia during final regular season meet of the year Lowest low: Head coach Melanie Onufrieff stepping down at the end of the season
men’s lightweight rowing Ivy: Seventh place Highest high: Freshman Eights overtaking No. 1 Cornell and coming in first place out of four teams at the Geiger Cup Lowest low: Falling to Princeton and Georgetown in third place by a little less than 10 seconds
men’s heavyweight rowing Ivy: Seventh place Highest high: Narrowly losing to Princeton in the Childs Cup but overtaking Penn Lowest low: Falling to both Penn and Yale, coming in third place by more than 10 seconds in the Blackwell Cup JOSE GIRALT / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
wrestling Season Record: 6-6 Ivy: Third place Stars: Eren Civan, Kevin Lester Highest High: Crushing both Harvard and Brown to wrap up the regular season Lowest Low: Losing to Cornell 40-3 One to Watch: Robert Dyar JOSE GIRALT / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
sports
2011
men’s tennis
women’s tennis
women’s basketball
Season record: 8-15, 2-5 Ivy Ivy: Sixth place Star players: Haig Schneiderman, Nathaniel Gery Highest high: Dramatic 4-3 comeback win against Yale after trailing 3-0 Lowest low: Falling to Cornell 6-1 to finish off first losing Ivy season in nearly a decade One to watch: John Yetimoglu
Season record: 9-13, 0-7 Ivy Ivy: Eighth place Star players: Nicole Bartnik Highest high: Bartnik, who went 13-7 in the season, earning unanimous first-team all-Ivy Honors Lowest low: Freshman Tiana Takenaga losing the deciding match against Cornell One to watch: Nicole Bartnik
Season Record: 7-21, 6-8 Ivy Ivy: Fifth place Star players: Lauren Dwyer, Kathleen Barry Highest high: Ending up fifth in the Ancient Eight despite rough start Lowest low: Starting off the season with a 13-game losing streak One to watch: Melissa Shafer
ALYSON GOULDEN / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
track & field Ivy: Men: Sixth place Women: Second place Stars: Women: Sharay Hale; Men: Jeff Moriarty Highest high: Hale, the women’s Performer of the Meet at Ivies, goes on to be named first team AllAmerican in 400m Lowest low: Women fall just short at Ivy Heps One to watch: Kyra Caldwell
lacrosse Season record: 4-11, 1-6 Ivy Ivy: Seventh place Star players: Kacie Johnson, Karlee Blank, Taylor Gattinella Highest high: Winning their first home Ivy League game against Yale during Senior Day, 10-3 Lowest low: Four freshmen quitting the team before the season even started One to watch: Kacie Johnson JOSE GIRALT / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
ANGELA RADULESCU / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
volleyball Season record: 16-9, 8-6 Ivy Ivy: Tied for third with Princeton Star players: Megan Gaughn Highest high: Overtaking the previously undefeated Princeton in five sets Lowest low: Falling to Yale in three straight sets One to watch: Madeline Rumer JOSE GIRALT / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
golf Ivy: Men: Second place, Women: Fifth place Stars: Men: Clarke Granum; Women: Michelle Piyapattra Highest high: Piyapattra wins individual Ivy title by 10 strokes Lowest low: Yale’s ‘Killer’ final round at Ivies One to watch: Men: Jordan Lee, Women: Michelle Piyapattra
DANIELLE FONG FOR SPECTATOR
COURTESY OF COLUMBIA ATHLETICS
men’s swimming
field hockey Season record: 10-7, 3-4 Ivy Ivy: Fourth place Star players: Julia Garrison Highest high: Ending the season with a 3-1 win over Harvard in Cambridge Lowest low: Losing to Cornell 3-2 in double overtime; Losing to Princeton 6-1 One to watch: Gabby Kozlowski JASPER L. CLYATT / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Season record: 6-4, 4-3 Ivy Ivy: Third place Star players: Adam Powell and Hyun Lee Highest high: Winning the 400-freestyle relay at Ivy Championships, Columbia’s second ever relay-victory in history Lowest low: Losing to Cornell in Ithaca after beating the Big Red last season One to watch: Harry Stephenson
women’s swimming Season record: 5-4, 3-4 Ivy Ivy: Third Place Star players: Mariele Dunn, Annie Perizzolo, Katie Melli Highest high: Finishing third at the Ivy League Championships, the highest ever finish in the history of the program Lowest low: Losing to Penn in Philadelphia after beating the Quakers last season One to watch: Katie Melli, who qualified for the 2012 Olympic trials JASPER L. CLYATT / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
softball Season record: 17-29, 7-13 Ivy Ivy: Seventh place Star players: Maggie Johnson, Emily Caruthers, Anne Marie Skylis Highest high: Maggie Johnson’s no-hitter against Princeton, which was part of a seven-game win streak Lowest low: Starting off the Ivy League season 1-7 One to watch: Prophet Gaspard KATE SCARBROUGH / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
NEWS
PAGE 8
MAY 9, 2011
Barnard SGA votes to recognize sororities BY JACKIE CARERRO Spectator Staff Writer This year Barnard’s Student Government Association voted to formally recognize Greek life after months of debate and lobbying from members of sororities. Barnard has historically not recognized Greek organizations on the basis that they choose members on a “discriminatory basis,” but after several votes SGA will fund the InterGreek Council, the three-branched Greek life governing board, and allow the IGC to post posters and request meeting space around campus. Barnard students in sororities represent 10.4 percent of the student body, but they make up half of the sorority population at Columbia. SGA voted down a resolution to formally recognize Greek life last April, but during the fall semester SGA agreed to create an internal committee to reassess the issue of sorority recognition after the IGC said it would consider a cap on Barnard enrollment in Greek life. Barnard
students participated in town halls and a non-binding student poll on Greek life. According to SGA Vice President of Finance Priyata Patel, BC ’11, 1,345 students—57 percent of the student body—participated in the poll. 57.1 percent voted in favor of recognition and 42.9 percent voted against. “The poll was one of the many initiatives that SGA led in order to gain student feedback on the issue,” Patel said in November. “Obviously the poll has a lot of weight.” In November, SGA’s Representative Council voted in favor of stage-one sorority recognition, which gave IGC sorority members the right to put up fliers on Barnard’s campus, hire a group adviser, and reserve space. Last month SGA voted to give the IGC stage-two recognition, which means the Panhellenic Council, InterFraternity Council and Multicultural Greek Council will receive funding from Barnard in the fall. SGA Representative Council members said they based their decisions on student feedback
from the town halls and poll. Five SGA members voted against stage-one recognition on the grounds that a significant number of students voted against recognizing sororities on campus.“I don’t think we can discount the 577 students who voted against Greek life recognition,” Megan Shannon, BC ’11 and vice president of student life, said. Lauren Perrine, BC ’12 and Panhellenic Council president, emphasized that additional funds were needed because of their membership growth over the last few years. Perrine said that their hope is that with stage two recognition, the Panhellenic Council can also begin to add a new sorority—a process that would need to start this summer in order to have a chapter begin operations in fall 2012. “The chapter size had become unmanageable and another chapter was desperately needed,” Perrine said. Amanda Evans contributed reporting. jacquellena.carerro @columbiaspectator.com
MARIA CASTEX / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
FORUM | A representative of the IGC makes a presentation to members of SGA about Greek life.
Legal battle ends, construction begins on Manhattanville campus Columbia rolling out new global to a close. All of the building owners in the plan’s footprint sold their properties to the University except for Nick Sprayregen, the owner of four Tuck-It-Away storage buildings, and Gurnam Singh and Parminder Kaur, who run two gas stations. The New York State Court of Appeals ruled in June that eminent domain can be used to obtain private properties in the area, which was declared “blighted” by the Empire State Development Corporation— thereby allowing Columbia to carry through its plans for a continuous campus.
CHABLI BRAVO / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Construction has begun on a slurry wall for Phase I of the Manhattanville campus.
12% 10% 8% 6% 4% 2% 0%
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
Class Percent Admitted
cornell
upenn
princeton
Columbia has also become more selective relative to the other Ivies. Only Harvard had a lower admit rate for the class of 2015. yale
The admission rate for Columbia College dropped to its lowest point ever this year— just 6.4 percent for the class of 2015, University officials announced in March. The School of Engineering and Applied Science admitted 9.9 percent of applicants, translating to an overall admit rate of 6.9 percent for the two schools—lower than the most competitive rate in the Ivy League last year, Harvard’s 6.92 percent. This year’s admissions cycle represented a 33 percent increase in applicants from last year, with almost 35,000 students in total applying to Columbia College and SEAS. University officials said the increase in applications was consistent with Columbia’s switch to the Common Application this year, which somewhat simplified the application process. “By virtue of our continued commitment to outreach and access, an increasing global awareness of Columbia’s reputation, and our new membership with the Common Application, we anticipated and were prepared for an
increase in applications,” Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Jessica Marinaccio said in a March statement. Columbia had a lower admissions rate for the class of 2015 than Yale University, which offered admission to 7.35 percent of applicants; Princeton University, which admitted 8.39 percent; and Stanford University, which admitted 7.1 percent. In a recent interview, University President Lee Bollinger said that while the reduced admit rates may be seen as a measure of the school’s academic greatness, they must be kept in perspective. “I certainly don’t take pride in turning down 92 percent of everyone who applies,” Bollinger said. Students said that the spike in applicants and dip in admit rates will not change Columbia’s identity as an institution. “As far as Columbia’s increased ‘selectivity,’ the school was incredibly selective to begin with, so it hasn’t really changed my opinion too much,” Sidney Drill, SEAS ’15, said. Sonalee Rau contributed reporting. sarah.darville @columbiaspectator.com
Columbia’s combined admit rate has fallen from 9.16 percent for the class of 2010 to 6.9 percent for the class of 2015.
columbia
BY SARAH DARVILLE Spectator Senior Staff Writer
more selective than ever
% Admitted
Columbia College admit rate hits record low at 6.4 percent
harvard
INTERSECTION
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Sprayregen, Singh, and Kaur appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the nation’s top court decided not to hear the appeal last December—closing the case for good. In December, Bollinger said, “I think it is a symbolic moment as well as a particular victory on the litigation. … It’s a very important moment in the history of the University.” On the other hand, Sprayregen’s attorney Norman Siegel said that the denial “means that the abuse of eminent domain in New York stands.” Beth Mitchell, a spokesperson for the ESDC, the state agency that is able to invoke eminent domain, said in April that the organization is in the process of appraising the properties and is expected to begin to acquire them in 2011. Some of the other buildings of Phase I, including those for the School of the Arts and the Business School, are in various stages of the design process. Currently, construction is focusing on building a slurry wall, a steel trench around the perimeter of the construction site to keep out groundwater and allow for the foundations to be joined. According to Ramesh Raman, executive director of environmental field compliance for Manhattanville, Columbia is committed to getting a silver designation from Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. LEED ratings are quantified by fulfilling credits in five design categories—sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, and indoor
dartmouth
With over a block of demolition finished, the University has begun the first steps of construction on its Manhattanville campus. Scheduled for completion by 2020, Phase I of the project will create six buildings—the future homes of the Jerome L. Greene Science Center, the School of the Arts, the Business School, the School of International and Public Affairs, and an academic conference center. The area spans from 125th to 131st streets,
a three-block distance due to a distortion of the Manhattan grid system, and from Broadway to 12th Avenue. The facility closest to completion is the Jerome L. Greene Science center, a building that will house 70 labs and the neuroscience, biochemistry, and molecular biophysics departments. “We’re set,” University President Lee Bollinger said this spring of the funding for the building’s construction. “Now we have to raise funds for programming.” The construction process is moving forward now that a three-year legal battle has come
brown
BY ABBY MITCHELL AND FINN VIGELAND Columbia Daily Spectator
17.95 6.17
6.90
7.35
8.39 8.70
9.73
12.26
GRAPHIC BY REBECCA SCHWARZ
centers, programs for undergrads BY SAMMY ROTH Spectator Senior Staff Writer The University expanded its globalization plans this year, announcing five new global centers and considering new ways to give undergraduates more exposure to the world. Over the last few months, administrators have said that Columbia will open global centers in Turkey, Kenya, Chile, Brazil, and Kazakhstan. These centers will join centers already established in Paris, Beijing, Mumbai, and Amman, Jordan. In an interview last month, Vice President for Global Centers Kenneth Prewitt said that it is unclear how the University will utilize the global centers, noting that it is important that the University find a way for undergraduates to take advantage of them. But he emphasized that the global centers initiative is still young, with the first center having opened just over two years ago. “It sounds like a robust system,” Prewitt said. “But as I sometimes say, it’s like a baby—a little baby, an infant—that hasn’t stood up yet, let alone walked, let alone run.” The centers in Istanbul, Turkey, and Santiago, Chile, will likely be the next ones to open, possibly as soon as the fall semester. The Nairobi, Kenya center will probably open within the next academic year. It’s not yet clear when the centers in Kazakhstan and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, will
open, or even which city will host the Kazakhstan center. In April, the University hosted a conference, “Columbia Goes Global,” to discuss the future of its globalization plans. “I’ve really come to hate the word ‘globalization,’” Barnard President Debora Spar said during a panel at the conference. “Everyone throws it out all the time, and I don’t think there’s ever any agreement what they’re actually talking about when they talk about globalization.” Administrators have discussed several programs that would send undergraduates to the global centers, even if a student could only spend a short period of time at each one. Among them is an idea touted by University President Lee Bollinger: an optional program for a fifth year of undergraduate study, during which students would travel to each of the centers. Bollinger has said that the University would need to find money to fund this initiative, but according to Prewitt, there might be a pilot program for this plan as early as next year. Additionally, this fall the University will start testing a new study abroad program at its Paris center, according to history professor Victoria de Grazia, the center’s interim director. The program will take students abroad for eight months rather than the traditional semester, and students
SEE CENTERS, page 9
New athletics complex at Baker given OK amid local debate BY CHELSEA LO Spectator Senior Staff Writer Preparations for construction of a new athletics center and park space have begun at Baker Field after a months of community meetings, City Council debates, and a spot of controversy. A City Council vote on April 6 gave Columbia the green light to begin work on its plans for the Campbell Sports Center, which will include coaches’ offices, a student-athlete study center, an auditorium, and meeting spaces in addition to training facilities. Columbia’s plans also include the creation of the Boathouse Marsh, which will include a public waterfront park. Perhaps more significant to Inwood residents, however, was that the Council’s April 6 vote gave Columbia a 90 percent waiver of waterfront zoning laws, allowing Columbia to devote only 1.5 percent of its land to public waterfront access instead of the required 15 percent. That led residents and local elected officials to call for a community benefits agreement from the University. The battle to determine those benefits included a deadlocked vote by Community Board 12, which covers Inwood and Washington Heights, and a public spat between City Council members Robert Jackson and Ydanis Rodriguez about the
timing of the final City Council vote and community involvement in the negotiation process. University President Lee Bollinger said in a recent interview that he had signed the agreement—which includes provisions for extended local access to facilities for the community; educational programs and scholarships; funding for local parks; and resolution of concerns related to traffic, construction, disruptive stadium lighting, and maintenance. The agreement includes many of the benefits listed in an online petition, created by the local activist group Advocates for Inwood Manhattan, which garnered 545 signatures. Susan Ryan, an AIM member, said she and other AIM members would be meeting with elected officials this week to discuss the agreement, which in their opinion is not finalized despite Columbia’s announcement April 26 that it had already signed the agreement. “The items the University has committed to provide have various dates that are specifically spelled out within the Partnership Agreement. We moved forward to begin work on fulfilling some of the items in the Agreement before it was signed by President Bollinger,” Columbia senior public affairs
SEE BAKER, page 9
MAY 9, 2011
NEWS
PAGE 9
New global centers planned for Chile, Kenya, Kazakhstan CENTERS from page 8
ANGELA RADULESCU / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
LOST WEEKEND | Many New Yorkers traveled to Washington D.C. for the duelling rallies over the long weekend.
Over fall break, many head to D.C. for Rally to Restore Sanity RALLY from page 2 so-called “Jon Stewart generation” of college students and 20-somethings. By many accounts, there were as many toddlers and senior citizens as there were college students. In his closing speech, Stewart attempted to get serious, after three hours of levity that included a guitar duel between folk legend Cat Stevens and “Prince of Darkness” Ozzy Osbourne, Colbert and Stewart fighting after showing up in matching American flag pullovers, and a tribute to Anderson Cooper’s tight black T-shirts. “I think if you have this many people together, it’s a shame not to say something meaningful,” Marit Pearlman, CC ’10, said of Stewart’s speech, in which the comedian encouraged people to unite as Americans despite the pressures of the media. Shara Morris, BC ’11, said she was in good spirits despite staying up all night the night before to catch one of over 200 free buses chartered by the Huffington Post, and arriving so late to the rally that she and her friends watched Jon
Stewart’s closing speech from the tops of Porta-Potties. “I think sometimes part of the experience is just being around people, being here and being part of a very memorable event,” she said. Hollarsmith, who traveled on a Megabus, said she was amazed by the number of people who showed up. “I was astounded by how packed it was. I don’t think they were prepared for it. Half the crowd couldn’t see or hear anything,” she said. About halfway through the crowd, audience members cheered, not for anything Stewart or Colbert said, but to encourage those who attempted to climb 20-foot trees for a distant glimpse of a jumbotron. Phil Primason, CC ’10, who drove to the nation’s capital the night before from New York, said he and his friends had a good view of one of the jumbotrons. “It was fun, but I wasn’t expecting to gain any serious political insight. It was just fun to be here and to do this with friends,” he said. leah.greenbaum @columbiaspectator.com
will work with professors extensively on research. “It is Columbia in a different country,” de Grazia said But even though administrators are not yet sure of how the global centers will affect students, Bollinger said in a March interview that they were a better choice for Columbia than the full-service branch campuses that other schools, like New York University, have adopted. “The desire within the community from faculty—and I think from students—is very strong for trying to take advantage of the centers to learn about the world, work on the world,” Bollinger said. “I do believe this is the right strategy for globalization.” Melissa von Mayrhauser and Amanda Stibel contributed reporting. sammy.roth@columbiaspectator.com
astana or almaty, kazakhstan
paris, france istanbul, turkey
beijing, china
amman, jordan mumbai, india
nairobi, kenya
rio de janeiro, brazil Existing centers Potential centers
GRAPHIC BY FINN VIGELAND AND SKYLAR COZEN
High turnout for USenate town halls before ROTC vote, approval ROTC from page 2 that instituting the program would benefit Columbia students, both those who already participate in ROTC through other schools’ programs, and those who might now be encouraged to sign up. “If you evaluate this based on the contributions to education at Columbia, it’s a straightforward yes vote,” Applegate said in January. Some ROTC opponents argued that the program’s return would amount to a militarization of Columbia’s campus, and others made the case that ROTC would violate the University’s nondiscrimination policy because the military continues to bar transgender individuals from enlisting. Gavin McGown, CC ’13, who identifies as transgender, said last month that the University should apply the
nondiscrimination policy in the same way for transgender students that it had for gay students before the DADT repeal. “If you have a policy that you affirm in nine out of every 10 cases and you don’t affirm it in the one case, in what sense is that actually the policy?” McGown asked. The town hall debates were civil on the whole, although not without tense moments. At the second town hall, veteran Anthony Maschek, GS, who was awarded a Purple Heart for his service in Iraq, was heckled after saying, “Other parts of the world are plotting to kill you right now when you go to bed. It’s not a joke … these people, seriously, are trying to kill you. They hate America, they hate you.” Many students applauded Maschek, but several booed or shouted “racist,” leading
to media coverage portraying Columbia as unfriendly toward veterans. But Maschek later said in a statement that this is not the case, noting Columbia’s efforts to attract more veterans. “Comments by a small number of individuals at the town hall meeting have not changed my positive experiences at Columbia,” Maschek said. On April 1, the senate voted 51-17 to authorize Bollinger to negotiate ROTC’s return to Columbia. Exactly three weeks later, Bollinger announced that Columbia would officially recognize NROTC. Columbia students participating in NROTC, called midshipmen, will be able to participate in the NROTC consortium at the State University of New York Maritime College in the Bronx.Students could have participated in this NROTC program previously,
but under the new agreement Columbia will give NROTC midshipmen academic credit for their work. Columbia was not the only school to invite ROTC back to its campus this year. Harvard University officially recognized NROTC in March, and Stanford University and Yale University might be next, with faculty bodies at both schools voting in support of ROTC in the last few weeks. Applegate said last month that Columbia’s ROTC debate was often messy, but was worth having. “This is not a terribly complicated issue. We got to the core of it and we made our decision,” he said. “Everything worked. This is the way it’s supposed to work. It’s not always neat, it’s not always easy, but it worked.” sammy.roth @columbiaspectator.com
Inwood residents say more benefits needed at Baker Field BAKER from page 8 officer Victoria Benitez wrote in a statement. “We will continue to work closely with the community and elected officials to ensure that members of the public and university community can realize the shared benefits of the new Boathouse Marsh environmental area and of the Baker athletic facilities.” A University spokesperson said that Columbia has already responded to some community demands, including erecting a more aesthetically-pleasing fence and hedges around the Baker Field property, providing 13 more sports camp scholarships than before for a total of 32 scholarships, providing 3,000 free Columbia football tickets for this fall, and beginning the installation of remote
control lighting for all playing fields. But some residents say that isn’t enough, arguing that there are still unresolved issues with the current agreement—for example, the matter of naming a community signatory to represent the community and carry out the terms of the agreement, and a clause suggesting that the University be the final arbiter in case of dispute over the agreement—and that University communication has been frustrating. “We had to read in the newspaper that Baker Field construction was starting; we didn’t hear about it from Columbia directly, despite the fact that community construction meetings are a part of the Community Partnership Agreement,” Ryan said. chelsea.lo @columbiaspectator.com
JASPER L. CLYATT / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
BENEFITS | Residents have asked Columbia to erect more aesthetically-pleasing fencing around the construction site.
JASPER L. CLYATT / SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
COURT DATE
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Stephan Vincenzo, right, appeared in court in January, where search warrants were presented to the students’ attorneys.
Three frats lose brownstones, five students charged in drug bust BY SARAH DARVILLE AND LEAH GREENBAUM Columbia Daily Spectator After a five-month investigation, five Columbia students were arrested in December for selling thousands of dollars worth of drugs out of fraternity houses and dorm rooms. Alpha Epsilon Pi, Pi Kappa Alpha, and Psi Upsilon, the three fraternities that four of the students belonged to, will not return to their brownstones on 114th Street in September, following sanctions from Dean of Student Affairs Kevin Shollenberger that included extended social probation and three-year improvement plans. Harrison David, SEAS ’12, Chris Coles, CC ’12, Adam Klein, CC ’12, Jose Stephan Perez (known on campus as Stephan Vincenzo), CC ’12, and Michael Wymbs, SEAS ’11 have all plead not guilty to selling illegal drugs to undercover officers. They face a total of 65 charges and have appeared in court three times this year. David was charged for a
Class A2 felony for selling cocaine, facing a minimum of three years in prison. The other four face less serious charges. Prosecutors say the students sold most of the drugs out of common areas and bedrooms of their fraternity houses on 114th Street. Drugs were also allegedly sold from rooms in the Intercultural Resource Center and East Campus. Altogether, the students had made nearly $11,000 in sales to undercover officers since July. On the morning of Dec. 7, NYPD officers broke down doors in East Campus, the fraternity houses, and the IRC to arrest the five students before most on campus had woken up. Officers searched the students’ rooms and found an additional $2,000 worth of drugs, including 50 ecstasy capsules, Adderall pills, a half-pound of marijuana, and a bottle of LSD, which prosecutors say was applied to Altoids and SweeTarts. “The students arrested today supplied dangerous substances to their friends and
other students to turn a quick profit, but subjected themselves to risks, of which they were either ignorant or in denial. These students were playing with fire,” Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan said in a statement after the arrest. Shortly after the bust, Terry Martinez, dean of community development and multicultural affairs, was put in charge of conducting a review of the fraternities’ and IRC’s operations over the last four years. “To this end and over the past several weeks, Student Affairs collected information including but not limited to a history of service and philanthropic activities, evidence of contributions to the greater community, Greek Judicial board records, academic and judicial records, and prior incident reports,” said a statement from Student Affairs, released in April, following Shollenberger’s decision on the fraternities. “Throughout the review, it was always our goal to render a fair, impartial decision based on the
feedback and information gathered as part of this comprehensive process.” The IRC will not face any disciplinary action, following Martinez’s review. “There were far fewer judicial issues with members of the IRC—significantly less—and significantly fewer issues with academic probation,” she said. Loren Berman, JTS/GS ’12 and a fraternity member, said he and other Greeks feel the decision against the fraternities was unfair. “The people who weren’t involved are getting penalized for what a few people did,” he said. Others said they weren’t sympathetic towards the students who sold drugs. “It’ll teach them a lesson,” Adam Herrada, GS, said in December. “Coming to Columbia for a degree, leaving Columbia to go to jail ... you get involved with the wrong crowd, sooner or later it’ll catch up with you.” Karla Jimenez contributed reporting. news@columbiaspectator.com
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SPORTS
MAY 9, 2011
Gross possibly NFL-bound, believes Lions moving in right direction FOOTBALL from page 6
HENRY WILLSON / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
SAYING GOODBYE | The Lions lose several players to graduation, and will look to players like Nick Crucet to fill their shoes.
Baseball seniors have successful careers at Columbia BASEBALL from page 6 The final weekend against Penn brought four long slugfests, which the two teams split. In Philadelphia, after losing game one in devastating but familiar fashion on a walk-off home run, the Lions sent off their seniors on a high, rallying from a 6-0 deficit to win the final game of the season 11-10. “Granted this year didn’t go as good as some of us wanted to, but I like to look at it as the four years as a whole, and I think that this group of guys that we have—seniors especially—we’ve done a lot of great things,” senior
shortstop Alex Ferrera said. “We won a championship freshman year, we had a great year last year, and just the team overall is a special group of guys, and record aside, we’ve had a lot of great experiences and that’s something I’m going to take with me for well past graduation.” The Lions will also lose their best player and team captain, center fielder Nick Cox, who was the catalyst at the plate and clutch in the field all season long. “Our class, definitely from day one when we got here, has really influenced our team, and as hard as it is to take your
senior year not to where you thought it was going to be, I think this group of guys were great freshman year through senior year,” Cox said. Cox added he hopes to continue playing in the future if presented with the opportunity. “Nick Cox is not going to be replaced. It is going to be a new guy. It’s middle of the field, those are key positions, but we feel like we got guys that can step up and do it,” Boretti said of next season. “It’ll be great competition as it is in the fall and we feel good about the roster … we feel that we match up very well in the league.”
(2072), and eighth in rushing yards (516). He also threw 19 touchdowns, rushed for three, and was named first team all-Ivy. There was also a tangible change in the attitude towards the football program by the school and the team itself. Nearly 11,000 were in attendance at the Homecoming game against Dartmouth. “It was packed. It felt great. The support of the fans is definitely great,” Kennedy said. “Even within the program, a lot of the work ethic, the attitude has changed in my four years. Hopefully, moving forward, that means more wins long after I’m gone.” However, 2011’s team will need to fill two significant gaps due to the graduation of Kennedy and Gross, both of whom were named first team all-Ivy. Kennedy led the league in touchdown receptions (9), was fourth in
receptions (50) and was third in reception yards (616). Gross, who in many ways was the heart of the team, leaves a huge void in the defense. In addition to his leadership, he led the league with 124 tackles and was voted defensive MVP by his teammates. Gross may even have a future in the NFL—he was encouraged by a conversation he had with New York Jets special teams coach Mike Westhoff. However, he has to wait for the lockout to end and the labor negotiations to be completed. Until then, Gross plans to train at his home in Kettering, Ohio. “Overall,” Gross said, considering this past season and the future of Columbia football, “I’m happy the way the team came together and the future of the program. Everything is moving in the right direction.” If the team can maintain the progress it’s made this year, the program will no doubt continue to improve in 2011.
Agho, Barbour will continue to grow in the 2011-2012 basketball season MENS BASKETBALL from page 6 senior guard Noruwa Agho who stole the headlines with a 31-point game. The Lions lose four seniors to graduation but will return several starters, including Agho, rising junior point guard Brian Barbour, and rising sophomore guard Steve Frankoski, who all performed admirably in 2010-11. Frankoski impressed as a rookie, and will share some of the
team’s responsibilities with Barbour and Agho next season. As a senior, all eyes will be on Agho as he continues to climb Columbia’s all-time scoring charts. Although the first game of 2011-2012 is still months away, Smith has already started preparring. “I look forward to have the spring and summer with them,” he said. “It’s when you really get good, and for guys that really want to make the next step, it’s their time.”
MAY 9, 2011
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SPREAD PHOTOS BY CHABLI BRAVO, YUN SEO CHO, JASPER L. CLYATT, ROSE DONLON, ALYSON GOULDEN, ANDRA MIHALI, AND KATE SCARBROUGH COVER ILLUSTRATION BY JASPER L. CLYATT